A Bryant rookie card sold for $1.795 million at auction. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Kobe Bryant rookie card sells for nearly $1.8 million at auction

By Erin Walsh | Last updated Mar 7, 2021 11:42 AM ET

Kobe Bryant memorabilia has skyrocketed in price since the Los Angeles Lakers legend died in a tragic helicopter accident last year. On Saturday, a Bryant rookie card sold for $1.795 million at Goldin Auctions.

The "1996-97 Topps Chrome Refractors #138 Kobe Bryant Rookie Card — BGS PRISTINE/Black Label 10" is just one of two in the world "at its level of perfection," according to Goldin Auctions.

Final Sale Price: $1,795,800

An all-time record for any Kobe Bryant card. pic.twitter.com/dTStDwavHx
— Goldin Auctions (@GoldinAuctions) March 7, 2021

A lot of Bryant memorabilia has sold recently. The shoes he gifted to LeBron James in 2002 sold for $156,000. A piece of the court where he played his final NBA game sold for more than $600,000, and Bryant's childhood basketball hoop recently sold for $37,200 at Heritage Auctions.

Although Bryant's rookie card sold for a lot, it's not the highest-selling card ever. A Luka Doncic rookie card recently sold for $4.6 million, and a LeBron James Upper Deck rookie Patch Parallel card sold at auction for $1.845 million.

Erin Walsh

Erin Walsh is a Boston sports fan through and through. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Bridgewater State University and currently is in pursuit of her Master's Degree in Journalism from Northeastern University. Follow her on Twitter @ewalsh90

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